The Cape St. George Light lost a dear friend and benefactor with the passing of Lou Kellenberger on June 28.
Lou and his wife Betsy were long-time members of the St. George Lighthouse Association, and avid supporters of our efforts to preserve the Cape St. George Light. As a professional photographer, Lou often visited the island to shoot new images of the lighthouse, and never hesitated to make his beautiful photos available for our promotional use.
On two separate occasions, his award-winning photos of the Cape St. George Light have appeared on the cover of Lighthouse Digest, the national magazine that supports and reports on the activities of the world’s lighthouses.
Lou and Betsy supported many of the area’s lighthouses with their photography. As members of the St. Marks Refuge Association, they were active in the efforts to restore the St. Marks Lighthouse. When the Cape San Blas lighthouse was moved to Port St. Joe in July of 2014, Lou and his camera were there in the rain to document the historic event.
While we knew Lou well as an accomplished lighthouse and nature photographer, only in his passing did we learn more about our dear friend. Born in West Virginia, Lou and Betsy spent many years in Dothan, Alabama, before relocating to Tallahassee. Lou retired as a financial advisor for Morgan Stanley in 2010, but in his generous way continued to offer retirement planning assistance to Tallahassee city employees.
It is difficult to express the extent of the appreciation and gratitude that we owe Lou for all he has done for the Cape St. George Lighthouse. His photographs appear in our brochures and on our website, and his prints are offered for sale in our gift shop. Never did Lou seek a penny of compensation for sharing his work with us. He just wanted to help preserve lighthouses.
We thank him for that, and can only be grateful that his light will shine on through the many images of our area’s lighthouses that he has left for us to share with future generations.
